Sounds in the Dark
by ser3ne eternity
Summary: AUish. Against the dark backdrop of misery that defines Otogakure, Sasuke gets as close to love as he's ever going to get. Rating may change.
1. Chapter 1

_inspired by: Kagome Yuki Niwa, KibaSin, KarasuKimi  
because crossovers are good._

Disclaimer. We already know this isn't mine, aside from the plot of course. I just couldn't help myself with this idea. So, onwards!

**Sounds in the Dark**

_Summary__**:**__  
_**AUish.  
**Against the dark backdrop of misery that defines Otogakure, Sasuke gets as close to love as he's ever going to get.  
_Her eyes glow in the darkness and her voice is a low murmur of air filling his lungs. He wants to touch her, she's so mesmerizingly solemn. Lost and embittered. "Hell is here, in our own cozy little niche called Sound and hope is our water because in Sound there isn't enough of it." _

**SxK  
T.**

**1**  
o0o  
_.reconnecting._

_--_

When Sasuke makes his way back to Konoha, bloodied and worn, and with a newly acquired mangekyou sharingan, the chuunin gatekeepers rush to call the Hokage and Naruto is the one to catch him when he passes out from blood loss.

He wakes up to find himself in a hospital with Sakura bent over him, hands the colour of a soothing green. Kakashi claps his shoulder comfortingly, but the action seems redundant and he's not quite sure he made the right choice.

But then again, he has nowhere else to go.

So four years later, here he is. Nineteen, and someone who should know better. Here he is. Square one. Back in the same village he left behind. It's different now from when he left it, with the less than favourable circumstances and the addition of new faces both physical and inanimate.

The Hokage Mountain looks more crowded, he thinks, the solemn features of stone staring back at him—unflinching. _When did that happen?_

There are familiar things too though. Like the crackedvibrantagedmatures faces of trademark buildings gone vintage, former worshippers set straight—_there goes Ino hanging off Shikamaru's arm_—former classmates that don't give a shit—_a lie, because he remembers Naruto and Sakura, faces lit up at the sight of his battered self_—and the teachers that failed—_except he never blamed Kakashi_.

And then there are the villagers, with eyes like vultures and opinions switching at the toss of a coin.

The same people that used to look at him and see a hope embodied in a lineage of eyes the colour of flames and blood.

And now he sits here.

The hospital room is dark. And the thought keeps echoing in his head, carving the facts into his conscience. He's basically in jail despite the white washed walls. He's losing track of days.

He's pale, paler than usual. Trembling. Alone. And deep down inside, maybe a little afraid. But there goes that pride again, and he sits up straighter against the wall. There's phantom grime, dirt, old sweat and blood—that he thought he ran out of—the feel so engrained in his skin that he feels the weight of it all despite his clean complexion and fresh hospital clothes...

For a moment, one single moment, he thinks of Otogakure and the endless rice fields. He remembers and drifts into a fitful slumber. And in his conscience there is her, fallen and tragic like him, but untouchable.

_--_

_--_

_--_

He dreams every night, of reaching out for something that shouldn't be, something he doesn't deserve and has no right wanting. Still, he sits at night, awaiting for sleep to grasp him in it's clutches. And then...

_She has blue eyes, like Naruto. But darker, with a little more turmoil—_

Oh...right, what was he thinking about again?

Naruto and Sakura have yet to visit him after their initial meeting. But as he's lost track of time, he holds onto the thought that maybe they'll be coming one of these days even though he won't know what to say to them. But their presence will be a reprieve because their team had always been a sanctuary to forget. And _fuck, _he'd really just like to forget everything right about now.

Forgetting is much harder than people would think. Sasuke should know, he's spent the worser majority of his life attempting it and failing just like everything else that's meant so much to him and that he tried so hard at...except for the one thing he now regretted.

_Itachi's dea—_except he doesn't finish the thought, because really he's already forgotten and silence isn't good for his peace of mind, especially not in the dark as he is put in the less used area of the hospital.

The dark makes him think to entertain himself, except for the fact that all his thoughts are memories and all his memories are sad excuses of attempted family and friendship. In essence, all the times that happiness has slipped away unnoticed.

"_you're afraid," she says, the candle flickers. he wonders why he's so angry with her afterward._

In the privacy of his mind, he thinks to himself that she's wrong.

_she catches him off guard, blood drips from a fine slash on his cheek._

Except of course, when she's right.

_--_

_--_

_--_

He's sure a couple of days or maybe even weeks have passed because he's now catalogued all the different chakra signatures of the ANBU guards that secretly check up on him and can even recognize them by mask. He could possibly guess at their true identity if he really wanted to, except for the fact that he might need his sharingan to see through their hiding places and Tsunade was very specific about her restrictions.

She doesn't seem to like him much.

"_hell i even hate you," she laughs like it's normal. except it isn't, _and he doesn't think he should be thinking about her.

And he doesn't think it'd be smart to show them those eyes that Konoha now calls 'cursed'. Despite his Uchiha pride, he has to admit...the power they give and the consequences entailed really are fucked up. What with the insanity and all, and hearing voices in your head...

And that's coming from him.

_--_

_--_

_--_

Maybe, he should've at least tried to force down the food the hospital gave him.

Sasuke thinks that maybe the hunger has finally gotten to him. Or maybe it's the dark, secluded space they put him in or the lack of social exchange. Whatever it is, he can't sleep anymore. Because when he sleeps, he dreams of her. And dreaming of her is never a good thing because seeing her face in his sleep shouldn't seem so uplifting—it shouldn't inspire such confusing feelings from him.

And it definitely _should not _hurt the way it does to hear her voice and feel her touch, to see her eyes or run his fingers through her hair only to wake up and realize it was just a dream. That she wasn't there with him, to challenge, to argue, to fight with. He doesn't miss her, because he never cared about her. Because she was just _there. _

But he still dreams of her.

He can still recall past conversations, arguments, fights. The way her hair looked when it was down, the way she held her weapons and polished her swords. The slight, subtle tilt of her mouth when she smiled. The scar on her hip. The insignia of Oto shining bitterly upon her brow.

_Fuck, _Sasuke thinks to himself and tries to focus on the growling of his stomach instead.

Being in the hospital is a place for healing and moving on for all intents and purposes, instead though, Sasuke feels like he's in a prison.

--

--

--

He hears her laughter in his head, a string of melodic notes put together, it beats in his head. He remembers the feel of her smile against his fingertips and—_damn it. Damn it!_

_Why am I still thinking of you? Why don't you leave me alone? Why can't I just **fucking** forget?_

"Don't think too hard. You look like you might pass out from the stress."

The voice is undoubtedly male, rough like it was during childhood, but there was an authoritative quality to it now, a deep and quiet voice forever painted with amusement.

_Naruto, _Sasuke recognized with something akin to relief.

He was met with the sight of golden hair, a beacon in the secluded wing of the hospital of Konoha gone vintage with age. Naruto grinned at him, because he knew that Sasuke thought he forgot about him—_and he relaxes unconciously, because no matter what Naruto will alwaysalwaysalways be his best friend_—and Sasuke noticed that the marks on his cheekbones had faded to the point where only four were visible, two on either side, angled perfectly on his grown face.

Behind him, he saw Sakura move with a confident gait, and her head held high with the coat of a medic-nin concealing how she'd grown into her womanly curves—so different from the timid and afraid little girl he used to know. Sakura looked at him expectantly, giving him her undivided attention.

_Her hair is long again, _he observed and he wondered at her new hairstyle, two locks of hair bound and trailing to the small of her back. But the longing in her eyes still looked familiar, echoed the past—and with sudden clarity, he felt distinctly uncomfortable with her devotion.

Part of him felt pity that she couldn't move on and part frustration because even after all these years, she still couldn't see what was right in front of her _fucking _eyes because _he_ saw the way Naruto tenderly guides her through the open door, never mind the fact that she could pulverize the whole door in her way with a single squeeze.

--

--

--

The three former teammates settled in hesitantly, easing into comfort cautiously like one does to avoid stepping on cracks in the road.

Sakura's hands were enveloped with the glow of her eyes as she checked him over and he ignored the way her fingers trembled, almost like she wanted to touch him and how her hand accidentally brushed against his wrist in her examination followed by a swift and slight pinch.

But he gave her one glance and she noticed how his eyes had lightened from onyx now to a deep, slate grey instead.

"How are you feeling, Sasuke-kun?" she asked. He couldn't help but notice how her voice was light, almost a soprano with a lilt to it as it echoed in his head. It sounded delicate, so utterly girlish, fitting of her name. And then he compared it to the voice he could hear in his head, which was low and sultry, a womanly tenor.

He remembered one night when her head of dark hair lay next to his own and how she'd sprawled over him and asked, perhaps a bit snide and mocking, "_why didn't you tell her you loved her back all those years ago...?"_

And after weeks of having the time to ponder on past issues, Sasuke now knew the reason even if Sakura herself hadn't realized it yet...

"Oi, you listening?" Naruto waved a hand in his face and Sasuke watched as Sakura scolded their blonde teammate. Her expression would be motherly almost, if it weren't for the gentle touch of her staying hand against Naruto's.

She might've wanted to be with him, but she would always belong with Naruto.

"What do you want, Naruto?"

"What do you think?" Naruto raised a brow, "We came to visit you. We've heard from the other medic-nin that you haven't exactly been...all there. What's this I'm hearing about you mumbling in your sleep?"

But Sasuke's expression suddenly closed. "Why should I tell you?"

Naruto scowled, but Sakura spoke first. "We're just trying to help, Sasuke-kun."

"Tsunade sent you." His voice was sharp with accusation. "First she wouldn't let you come and now she's decided to use you to get information out of me. Otogakure's fucking decimated, and Orochimaru's rotting in hell as we speak, what the hell more do you want?"

"For fuck's sake, what's up your ass? Aren't you a little too weak to be prissy?" Naruto quipped, moving to sit before the Uchiha. The bed shifted under the added weight. It was a little disconcerting seeing Naruto up close and at his level instead of standing. He no longer wore vibrant colours. In fact, now that he thought about it, Sasuke wasn't sure he could remember Naruto wearing orange after he turned seventeen.

Naruto crossed his arms, clad in a black sweater with black armguards over them, his feet sporting closed lightweight boots and a jounin vest as his new ensemble. "What are you thinking about right now?"

"No one."

It remained unsaid that they asked a different question, but his answer's meaning is all too clear. Had he met someone while he was away? Had he forgotten them and treasured her in their place...?

Sakura raised a brow and marveled at the scar over his left collar bone. "What happened to you? Why did you leave? Why did you _stay?"_

Sasuke shrugged and avoided the question. There were too many ways to answer, and none of them would satisfy her. "Why do you think I stayed?"

"..."

She felt her heart sink when he looked away, a preoccupied sheen to his eyes. There had been someone else.

"I don't know." she finally whispered, before turning with a quick goodbye, her hair fluttering after her in a frenzy. "I promised Tsunade-shishou I would help her with something at the hospital...I'll...talk to you guys later."

"Once again," Naruto scowled, but the longing was written all over his face, "_way_ to go, _asshole_."

"_you know," she snorted, "every time you just revert to dipshit mode...i forget why i even tolerate you." _

Sasuke squashed the thought from his mind.

"So, how've you been? For fuck's sake, you look like you haven't been sleeping. And what the hell are they feeding you? You look like a stick. Do you want me to bring you some ramen—"

Somehow, watching Naruto ramble made him relax. And Sasuke couldn't help but feel amused.

"Naruto."

"Because Ayame-nee and the old man have come up with some new—"

"_Naruto."_

"—recipes, they even have onigiri. You know, that stuff you like so much?"

"_here, catch." she tossed him something and he was surprised to find food in his hand. "well? it's your favourite, isn't it?"_

"_**Naruto."**_

Naruto closed his mouth with a sheepish grin. "Right, sorry. But seriously, everything alright?"

He stared at Naruto blankly. "I'm in a fucking hospital with fucked up lungs, surrounded by ANBU and women who gossip about how I murdered someone to get here. I'm pale. I'm tired. I'm hungry and I want to _fucking get out of here."_

Naruto smirked amiably. "You're always pale."

"Dobe,"Sasuke glared. "Don't test me."

"Please. What's the worst you could do? Chidori my ass? You're in no condition to even stand up and you think you can hurt me?" _Besides, we both know you've already done that._

Sasuke watched as Naruto unconciously rubbed his side and cringed in reminiscence.

"...how's Sakura been?"

Naruto's easy expression softened and quieted. "She's..."

_Still in love with you. _"She's fine."

"Naruto," Sasuke bit his lip—_shit, I'm not good at this—_"I don't...well, you know."

He watched his friend sigh wearily. "Doesn't matter if you don't. She does."

Sasuke had never been good with words. Words had always been Naruto's thing. But if he was, he wished he could've found the right words to say in this situation. But all he could think was, _you deserve her, _but even that wouldn't be enough and in the end that's what mattered. So he said nothing at all.

Instead, the two spent the next few hours catching up on what happened while he was gone.

The Rookie 9 that he had been a part of had all grown in age and power and bonds that Sasuke knew that it would sometiems hurt to see them known as the Konoha 11. The great 11 that helped prevent another shinobi war and moved onto ANBU sections and village specialists. Knowing he could've been a part of that stung more than he would admit.

It was also interesting to find that Kakashi had had a couple of flings while he was gone, his most known one being a brief burst of passion shared with Anko, the former chuunin proctor—it had been enough to keep the rumour mill in Konoha satisfied for the record of a whole month.

Ino had moved on with Shikamaru, and many of the other rookies had also paired off. A new Hokage had also come into power, the blonde woman that he had sometimes seen fighting with Orochimaru and Jiraiya.

All in all, Konoha had changed.

Without him.

"And that's basically it." Naruto grinned slightly before his expression tapered off into solemnity.

"Look Sasuke, there's something I need to tell you." Naruto was always serious when he used his first name.

He narrowed his eyes. "What's going on?"

"I know you're suspicious and I'm sorry I haven't visited you for the last two weeks but I've been busy with trying to keep the council from all out murdering you.

"You did some pretty bad shit while you were gone and the old hag Koharu and dipshit Himura want to make sure you're going to stay loyal. The only way they can see that happening is putting you on probation and under constant interrogation."

"..." Sasuke processed the information slowly. "You want me to tell you about Otogakure."

Naruto caught his eye. "Actually, they want to know more than that. They're asking about your mangekyou, Sasuke. They know you didn't get it from killing Itachi, Jiraiya's spy network knows that much at least."

_And most of all, they're questioning if you have any relationship with a current Oto-nin we have in custody. _But Naruto kept that bit of information to himself.

"So when am I supposed to meet with Ibiki?" he asked.

"Actually," Naruto grimaced, "you're going to be talking to me every day."

Sasuke's eyes widened. "What?"

"Tsunade doesn't trust the elders not to get involved, so she's having me deal with you personally."

Sasuke raised a brow. "Wouldn't you be considered biased?"

"Doesn't matter." Naruto shrugged, "They know you won't talk to anyone not Team 7 anyway."

"...So, how is this supposed to work?"

"Look, we'll start small alright? You don't even have to tell me anything personal, you can keep it purely factual if you want. I won't even push you for answers. Besides, wouldn't you rather talk to your best friend over a fucker that doesn't give a shit about what happens to you?"

Sasuke glared, but couldn't help but give pause at the _best friend _claim.

"...C'mon, don't look at me like that." Naruto begged, "I tried, okay! But your suddenly coming back is just too suspicious to ignore. They think you have motives, and it's not unreasonable that they do."

"..."

Naruto threw his hands up in agitation. "Fine. Be a bitch about it. Just think about it alright? You have two days before they send Ibiki and Anko."

"_why'd you leave them behind?"_

Sasuke watched as Naruto slowly got up and made his way to the door. Maybe it was desperation, or it might've been something else. All Sasuke knew was that he didn't think he could handle being in the dark. He was already too familiar with it to be healthy.

"When are you coming tomorrow?"

_--_

_--_

_--_

Tsunade steeped her fingertips beneath her chin expectantly.

"Anything?"

"I don't know what's wrong with him, Tsunade." Naruto shook his head seriously. "Something's different about him. I think there was something or someone he left behind when we brought him back with us. He came willingly, but looked back too much for it to be normal. He was heavily injured...and he possesses the mangekyou sharingan."

The Hokage sighed. "Yes, I remember. We took him for extensive care to treat chakra exhaustion and found the cursed seal to be dormant, if it even _is _dormant. But there is no presence of any tainted chakra. There was also complications with his lungs. Still though, the council decided he is still too much of a wild card to be left free." She pinched her nose in annoyance, "I personally agree with them for once."

"How's Sakura handling this?" Tsunade watched with a certain degree of sadness as Naruto's features hardened into a blank visage.

"As well as can be said, considering the history." He murmured. "Sasuke has agreed to speaking daily though."

Apparently, despite her instincts, Naruto was not in the mood to go into details over his love life. She would have to play the role of an authority figure for now.

"Good, I want as much information as possible." Tsunade explained. "It will help us decide his progress and possible reinstatement, and if we're lucky, it'll clear up some missing details on the other injured shinobi we currently have with us."

Naruto bowed briefly, formality taking over in lieu of his solemnity as was habit. "Of course."

Tsunade leaned back in her chair in weariness. Her sake stash was officially emptied. She would have to restock on that, she reminded herself. One glance to the corner of her desk lead her to believe that she was indeed making the right decision by going to check on her apprentice and some other patients at the hospital.

It was unacceptable, the way Sakura was still stuck and indecisive between her two teammates even after all this time. Tsunade nodded firmly to herself, before setting off at a furtive pace, lest Shizune catch her skipping out once more.

When she arrived, the hospital was going through a slow day. Many nurses and doctors simply fluttered about checking in on some of the less critical patients and keeping them company. Sakura herself was currently tending to a little boy with scraped knees. The sight made the Hokage smile fondly as she walked down the hall. She paused in her stride to stand by her apprentice's side as she finished with her patient.

"I'll need you to be more careful next time, okay Koji?" Sakura gave a small smile at the exuberant reply she received. She waved goodbye to the young civilian before she turned to Tsunade.

"Hai, shishou? So what's this new assignment you have for me?"

Tsunade gave a slight nod to Sakura, indicating for her to follow. As the two women walked down they passed by the even white doors on either side of the hall that were evenly spaced and marked the walls with an almost domino-like effect. Tsunade turned right and climbed a few stairs before finding herself on the third floor. Sakura followed closely, curious as her sensei opened a door to a secluded room.

Tsunade slid the door open, stepping into a fairly empty room. Sakura looked around her, observing the tables empty of any condolence gifts before seeing the room belonged to a young teenaged woman her age, appearing to be almost eighteen or nineteen. She was a beautiful girl, Sakura thought as Tsunade read over her charts at the foot of her bed. The patient had distinct features, and Sakura felt almost as though she'd seen her but couldn't be sure with her loose locks spread out around her face. Everything about her screamed femininity. Her sharp green eyes followed the tubes attached to her narrow wrists that gave way to tapered fingers.

When Sakura glanced at her face she wondered what the four diamond marking on her forehead meant. They were shaped, stranglely enough, to form a delicate four pointed star. She reached a slender hand to trace the markings and marveled at the girl's undisturbed expression.

Tsunade sighed, smoothing wayward bangs from the girl's brow. She turned, passing a thin folder to Sakura.

"What's this, Tsunade-shishou?" Sakura asked, as she leafed through the sparse files.

"She will be your new patient. She was found on the outskirts of Fire Country by Naruto sometime after Sasuke came back. I sent him and Neji to do some information gathering in order to see if Oto was really gone like the Uchiha claimed."

"I see. Do you know what's wrong with her?"

Tsunade came over to Sakura, shifting through the papers before giving Sakura the one she was looking for. "There isn't much we know about her. Naruto said she'd been on the verge of pneumonia. Luckily, he and Neji got her to Konoha on time but they weren't quick enough to avoid the effects of blood loss. She's been in a coma for the last three weeks and hasn't shown any signs of recovering quickly. Whatever happened to her was bad."

_Name: Unknown.  
Date of Birth: Unknown.  
Village: Otogakure. [Unconfirmed.]  
Sex: Female.  
Hair colour: Black.  
Eye colour: Blue.  
Occupation: Shinobi. [Was found with twin blades, kunai, shuriken on her person.]  
Reason of Admittance: Bleeding profusely from left lung, suffering serious fractures from right hand up. Possesses scars received possibly from Raiton jutsu. In coma, thus far._

Sakura pursed her lips, "Why do you want me to watch over her? Was it really such a good idea to bring her here without any idea of who she is? This report says she's most likely from Otogakure. How do we know she's not a threat?"

Tsunade crossed her arms. "Those are all very valid points. Unfortunately, you know how Naruto gets when he's made up his mind. He doesn't believe she'll hurt Konoha's interest."

"That's just like Naruto." Sakura muttered, as she examined her patient's bandages and did a quick diagnostic jutsu. "He didn't even catch her name and he saved her anyway. He didn't even have a reason did he?"

Tsunade remained silent, clearly unwilling to elaborate on that particular subject. "I just want you to notify me when she wakes. Until she does, watch her progress. I might even make you help her through therapy since I'm sure her left side and hand will be doing a lot of protesting when she wants to be on the move again."

Sakura sighed. "Alright then. I'll check on her at least once or twice a day then."

Tsunade smiled. "Thank you, Sakura. But for now go home, take a day off tomorrow. You're tired and if you don't want to rest then spend some time with Naruto. He has a lot on his mind that I'm sure you could distract him from."

"Sure, thank you shishou."

With that, Sakura turned and quietly made her way out of the hospital.

_You are a mystery, young one._ Tsunade pursed her lips thoughtfully. She glanced back at the young woman, so fragile and serene in the lone hospital room.

--

--

--


	2. Chapter 2

_inspired by: Kagome Yuki Niwa, KibaSin, KarasuKimi  
because crossovers are good._

Disclaimer. We already know this isn't mine, aside from the plot of course. So, onwards!

**AN: **Sorry guys, but it's about to get confusing with the flashbacks. I'll try and find a more obvious way to let you know when there's a serious scene change but in the mean time, please be patient! And thank you so much for all the responses, reviews and alerts! You guys are awesome. ^_^. And heads up for mature content...and no, it's not an all out lemon, sorry to lemon fans out there—I'm not exactly talented in writing those types of scenes.

Chapters are about to get longer from here on out, so prep for long reads!

**Sounds in the Dark**

_Summary__**:**__  
_**AUish.  
**Against the dark backdrop of misery that defines Otogakure, Sasuke gets as close to love as he's ever going to get.  
_Her eyes glow in the darkness and her voice is a low murmur of air filling his lungs. He wants to touch her, she's so mesmerizingly solemn. Lost and embittered. "Hell is here, in our own cozy little niche called Sound and hope is our water because in Sound there isn't enough of it." _

**SxK  
T.**

**2**  
o0o  
_.rewind, interrogate._

_--_

The staff at Konoha's general hospital watched Sasuke's progress with an almost morbid fascination. It was as though they were waiting to see how long it would take before he would crack or when exactly he would rise back up again, having fallen from grace the way he had. And yet, he showed no sign of pride nor of the desire to be healthy again. He spent nearly every day in a near catatonic state, only rousing at Naruto's presence and loud exclamations.

--

--

--

"Sasuke."

Sasuke chewed on the bland hospital food, inwardly grimacing at the coldness of it. The onigiri was nowhere near as good as—he squeezed his eyes shut, refusing to think about the former face that used to greet him every time he returned from training.

...It'd been a long time since he thought of his mother. It was painful, to remember the structure of her face that his own mimicked so well yet surprisingly, the pain was not nearly as excruciating as it had once been. Instead, it was replaced by an ache caused by the absence of another female altogether.

When he swallowed, the stale onigiri slid down the path of his throat uncomfortably.

"What, Naruto?"

"I can't believe you just ate that disgusting hospital food." Naruto stared. He could clearly remember how hard it had been to force himself to eat the distasteful foods when he craved for the old man Teuchi's house special.

Sasuke's chopsticks clicked quietly as he rested them against his now empty bento. The food settled into his stomach with a satisfying weight, though his tastebuds didn't receive the same treatment.

He scowled. _Neither can I._

Naruto gave a charming smirk. "You were getting desperate without me, huh?"

A second later, Naruto sported random parts of Sasuke's leftovers on his cheek. He picked up a chopstick, "At least you still have your aim."

"What do you want, Naruto?"

"Tell me."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at him. "About what?"

_About Oto,_ "About how you've been!"

Naruto gave a grin, one that was plastered and so ridiculously fake on his features that they both knew it.

There wasn't much response from Sasuke except a gradual movement of his head, sort of like a shake instead of a nod. The bright light of the window and white walls clashed violently with Sasuke's dark hair. Naruto vaguely noted how the hospital clothes seemed to hang limply from Sasuke's form. All the white seemed to overwhelm Sasuke's presence, washing him out in their blankness.

"How've I been?" he repeated to himself, nearly catatonic from being in the hospital for a whole record of three weeks, though Naruto could tell the trauma his body had suffered was beginning to heal quite nicely.

Naruto noticed he had that same onyx bead clenched tightly in his palm.

_It's his sanity I'm worried about...that's the same one that hung off that red ribbon on his wrist, but wasn't it bloody? _

But Sasuke had started eating somewhat more, which was more than what Naruto could've hoped for, really.

He spent a few silent moments thinking his answer through, as though trying to find words to describe exactly how miserable he was. But in the end there weren't words eloquent enough or fitting enough to describe exactly how fucked up he was. So he settled for saying, "I've been like shit."

Naruto laughed slightly at that. "Aren't you a ball of sunshine today, teme."

"Fuck off, dobe," Sasuke replied, though it lacked anger. "I'm imprisoned. How do you expect me to react?"

The harsh truth rang in those words. The subject had been something they'd avoided. Naruto hadn't been ready to give up his position as friend and teammate in place of something else—by interrogating Sasuke for the sake of the village, it meant realizing that idealism didn't always have a place in leading.

No matter what people said, no matter how close they were—they were still on different sides as far as anyone else not Team 7 was concerned.

Naruto sighed, "...You're not imprisoned. You're just on bed rest."

He gave Naruto a flat look.

Okay fine, Naruto had to admit, bed rest wasn't either of their most favourite thing, but still!

"Look, Sasuke...there's a reason for all this."

"Don't give me that tone. Don't make it sound any better than it actually is. How long are they going to keep me here?"

"..."

"Do they think I don't notice the containment seals? The shortened visiting hours?" Sasuke muttered bitterly, steadily gaining steam. He couldn't remember if he'd always felt this...angry or helpless. "Or what about the fact that they have you or Kakashi regularly checking on those seals as if I'm going to escape?"

"That's just procedure—"

"_Procedure,"_ Sasuke mimicked, misguided anger suddenly welling within the pit of his stomach. "Did Tsunade teach you that trying to prepare you for the Hokage mantle?"

Naruto stiffened, his eyes growing cold. "And what if she did?"

"Then she did a damn good job of making me just another criminal to you."

Naruto's chair screeched as he slid up in Sasuke's space.

"You don't get to accuse me of this shit, _teme,_" Naruto warned. "Just because you're Uchiha doesn't mean you get free of the standard treatment, asshole. You're the one who left Konoha, you're lucky I don't let them throw your sorry ass into a real jail cell _right now._

"Would you like that, Sasuke?" Naruto questioned, "Because I see the way you get when lights go out. Don't think I don't know you're afraid of the—" _dark._

"How do I get out?" Sasuke interrupted, eyes flickering under the chakra restraints. "What do I have to do to get some fucking breathing rights around here?!"

"Well when are you going to fucking open your mouth about Otogakure?!" Naruto retorted. "Were you ever going to say anything or are you just stalling? Because how long do you that's going to work with civilians flinching at the mention of your stupid curse mark or freaking doujoutsu—the people want answers, and Tsunade's going to have us give it to them or you can rot here for the rest of forever."

"...I haven't been stalling."

"Right," Naruto rolled his eyes sarcastically, "because talking about the weather is how you start a conversation leading to why you betrayed your village."

Sasuke huffed, "So I didn't want to talk about it. Fine. But you wouldn't either if you'd lived the last five, _six_ most fucking miserable years of your life in a village like _that."_

"_..._You made that choice, Sasuke."

"You wouldn't understand." Sasuke stated.

Naruto's nostrils flared in obvious challenge. _Try me._

Silence.

"Two more days." _Please._

"You're my best friend, Sasuke," Naruto closed his eyes, though it pained him to say it, "but to the village, you _are _just another criminal."

Sasuke's jaw locked.

"Tomorrow," his blonde teammate said, and then more firmly. "Tomorrow, you start talking or it's Ibiki and Anko."

With that said, Naruto walked out and slowly shut the door behind him.

Sasuke stared blankly at the glow of the isolation seals painted on the door lit a brief pale blue light before dying out once again.

The finality of the situation rang in his ears for hours on afterward.

--

--

--

It wasn't that Sasuke didn't want to tell Naruto all about Oto-_fucking-_gakure or Orochi-_fucking_-maru, it's just that wasn't his favourite thing to think about. And he wasn't sure he was ready to talk about the hell that embodied that doomed village, because he'd eventually have to start talking about _her_.

Things were bound to get complicated.

He wasn't sure how he knew, just that Team 7 had never been simple.

--

--

--

Tomorrow came.

And with it, Naruto came and sat down in his room. He sat partially in front of the only window in the room, and whenever Sasuke looked at him, he could almost see past him and into the freedom that was so close if he could only just..._jump_.

"Tell me, Sasuke."

"What do you want to know?"

Naruto stared at him venturingly, "What was it like?"

There was a few moments where Sasuke said nothing, as though trying to find the right way to describe the horrors that were seen and done in Orochimaru's village. He'd gone there under the belief that he would improve, and he had...but at a cost.

Finally, quietly, Sasuke muttered, "...Dark."

It always came back to the dark.

"How?"

He closed his eyes. "It would take too long to say it all."

"Tell me everything."

"Naruto, I don't think—"

There was a gentle touch of a hand on his shoulder, a comforting squeeze that caused him to hold his breath.

He looked at Naruto looking back at him, with eyes sharp and blue—_like hers—_and he realized, that this was it.

"Start wherever you like, ne Sasuke?" Naruto gave him an encouraging smile.

There was no turning back now.

He chewed the inside of his cheek,"...Aa."

He'd start with her.

--

--

--

Meanwhile, Sakura hummed to herself as she worked, quietly making her way to her last patient of her afternoon shift. Her paperwork fluttering, she blew at stray bangs and sighed. It was rather exhausting working full at the hospital now that Sasuke had returned and Konoha was going through repair stages while experiencing continued aftershocks from feuding with both Otogakure and Akatsuki.

Thinking about it, she could hardly believe how much the world had changed.

Navigating expertly through the hospital from years of familiarity, Sakura soon found herself in front of the room of the mysterious alleged Oto-nin.

She'd grown fond of the girl in the times that she had taken to checking up on her. Though the other woman had yet to speak a word or wake up in her presence, Sakura found her silence welcoming and her easy presence calming in a way she couldn't quite understand or describe.

Nevertheless, the medic-nin had taken to checking up on her charge last, her silence and unconcious cooperation very rewarding at the end of the day when Sakura was exhausted from the rest of her shift.

Sometimes, Sakura even found herself talking to the girl in her coma, finding that her unresponsiveness while most would find disconcerting, was rather nice in her opinion as it gave her a chance to feel free to speak of anything without feeling judged.

_Strange though, _she thought, _that __her room is actually a bit close to Sasuke-kun's. _

At that thought Sakura sighed. It'd been a while since she last visited Sasuke—their first reunion hadn't gone nearly so well and Sakura found that she wished more than anything to talk to him again. She'd missed him terribly while he was gone even though she wasn't quite sure if the feeling was mutual.

She quickly shrugged off the coincidence and brightened at the prospect of possibly visiting him during her break the next day. With that in mind, Sakura placed her papers down on a nearby table and set to work. She strode to the stats kept at the foot of her bed and quickly flipped through the latest reports on her.

Nothing was out of the ordinary.

Sakura glanced at the girl.

She was sleeping peacefully. Her hair fanned out on the bed and her breathing slow and somewhat harried. Sakura quickly checked her lungs and set about giving her natural healing process a gentle push with her own chakra.

It was odd that her lungs were healing at an inconsistent rate. Sometimes she would find the healing going sluggishly before she would return and find that it had sped up considerably once she was no longer present. Sakura made note to check into some medicine she could possibly give the girl when she woke up.

Sakura deftly rewrapped new bandages around her ribs and made sure her arm remained in a comfortable position. Afterward, Sakura settled into the chair by the bed and got comfortable.

She started small. She spoke of the weather, of her schedule, her thoughts, of outings with friends spent with laughter and fun. She spoke of Tsunade and her love of gambling and sake, but mostly she spoke of how much she was grateful for having her as her shishou. Sometimes she even spoke of Shizune and her new role as a bit of an older sister, she talked about Ino and how much she appreciated her in her life. She even talked about Kakashi and his Icha Icha or his lateness.

Sometimes, she even talked about Naruto—with his bright hair and bright eyes, his amazing smile and stupid laugh and his always being there. She talked about how much he meant to her, how she couldn't imagine not being friends with him or seeing him and Sai bicker about the measurements of their manly egos.

But mostly, she talked of Sasuke.

She bit her lip, "I know I've said a lot of things while I've checked on you, but I don't think I've ever told you about this guy...I'm sort of in love with him you see. I mean, well sort of because he's been away since we were thirteen—I'm eighteen by the way—and well, we didn't part on great terms.

"But I love him. I've loved him since I was twelve or just crushed on him _really_ _hard_ and maybe that's a little pathetic but..." Sakura sighed, "I can't really see myself loving anyone else? And I...I don't know—it has to be love if it's been this long, right?"

Sakura pursed her lips in reminiscence.

A long time ago, she'd thought that she might like Naruto, who had gotten so _strong_ _and tall_, Naruto, who had just _always_ been there...but when she saw Sasuke that first time they attempted to bring him back...

Tall and proud, he'd stood before her and looked at her with eyes so dark she felt her breath escape her instantly and then he'd said her name and...

"_He's always had me," _Sakura whispered wistfully. She closed her eyes, letting the words sink in. She'd never really talked to anyone about how she felt—not even Ino.

Her best friend had gotten over Sasuke a long time ago, so she didn't understand anymore what it was like to care about Sasuke because it'd only ever been a crush for Ino. But it was different for Sakura. Sasuke was...

She didn't even know the right word to describe him, just that Sasuke was something different, something wonderful...someone she's always wanted.

_Damn...so am I ever going to get over you...?_

"I _should _get over him, shouldn't I?" Sakura gave a wry smile, "What do you think ne? Because I don't think I'm smart enough to decide on my own. He could probably crush me and he'd know it but he wouldn't care...I must be crazy, huh?"

She raked restless hands through her hair in torn indecision. She would let go of him in heartbeat if she could, Sakura knew that because she knew Sasuke wasn't healthy for her, except...

_I don't think I'm ready for that._

She shook her head.

"Thanks for listening again. I'll see you later, stranger." Sakura said before she strode toward the door.

There was a slight shifting of cloth and she turned around quickly but her patient still rested motionless on top of the bed.

_I could've sworn something happened..._

Pursing her lips in suspicion, Sakura turned down two halls and around a corner to Sasuke's room.

--

--

--

He is twelve when he walks away and never looks back.

As a shinobi, he realizes that most decisions are hard ones—it's the reason you spend so much time thinking on it—and he also realizes that decisions you make are made with a sort of sense of resignment. You don't expect to live long because people die young when they're a ninja.

Some people already know this as soon as they sign themselves up at an early age for academy. Some people sign themselves up just for kicks, because some people never stood a chance in the world any other way in the first place.

_kids, running out of the academy. a flicker of excitement, anticipation._

Others though, find this out later and their twisted sense of glory and heroism is changed by a vision of blood and betrayal and the beckoning call of power—because that's what ninjas do. They kill, they lie, they steal—they do it all, and all for the highest bidder. It's just euphemized to fit political fancies, you know—so it's not quite so savagely barbaric and shit—because it sort of is. It helps to allay the monstrous pile of guilt that finds itself festering within a shinobi's chest—just a little though.

_wonder. curiosity. why does shinobi-san look so miserably wizened?_

Not quite enough to be worth acknowledgment.

Now, usually the first time you realize that you're fucked for life, is when you first feel the stolen blood off a man's chest—brain, eye, throat, _whatever_, it's all the same after a while—blood that _you_ stole, that you played _God_ with your little kunai that you never knew could be so lethal, when you had no right or goddamn business to be doing so.

_blood. so much dirt and grime, sweat. blood. dirty, so dirty._

Because you're supposed to be human. _Human_. You're supposed to feel things, be happy, live in peace.

But nobody can do that. That's why they train him—_and everyone else—_young. So that he's filled with these pretty illusions of power and glory and greatness and all things good, because he's a ninja. He fights for his village. He wears the symbol of his village big and **bold—**on his forehead, where people can _damn well see it_, never mind if they kill him for it.

Because he's patriotic.

He's a good person.

Right? _Wrong. _

_naivete at it's best._

That's class A _bullshit._

That's just what they tell him because he's young and stupid. And by the time he's old and smart, it's because experience hasn't been kind to him—and that's exactly what the higher-ups were fucking counting on.

_a great Kage, the source. the center of any village._

So you see, being a ninja _sucks_.

He gets good pay, but kills his emotions on auto-pilot, he pays rent by killing the person that maybe killed one of his loved ones—but the victory becomes bitter as soon as he realizes he just killed out the light of someone else's father or mother, sister, brother, lover, wife, husband...the list goes on.

_a shudder. gasp. loss of breath. slowing pulse. gone._

And suddenly he's made another kid miserable. Just. Like. Him.

_a lonely child, tears and cries. a fan caught in the blaze of thousands._

And what's worse...?

It's that he keeps going back for more.

_running in the dark. blind._

When you're a shinobi, you're desperate. Nobody makes you stay a ninja, but by the time you want out you're in too deep that it's too late—literally too late—it doesn't _feel_ too late.

It just is.

Don't wonder about why there are missing-nins. Wonder about why there aren't more.

_walk away from the light._

Sasuke is twelve when he heads towards Otogakure and leaves Konoha behind.

_thank you, goodbye, don't come after me._

_--_

_-- Otogakure_

_--_

Whereas Konoha had crowded streets and busy shops, lovingly aged with time and the presence of people, Oto's shops were left with wide spaces of concrete and dirt between them—as though even the buildings shared the mentality of the people, the instinct and desire to be independent and on one's own.

Colorful streets signs were replaced in favour of professional strokes of the village colours—black, grey, purple, white, blue. Neutral colours. Colours without feel or impression, save for the feeling of detachment. Otogakure was not so much a home, as it was a funtioning system.

It didn't work the way Konoha did.

Sasuke glanced at the sky. And hills never ending resting against the midnight backdrop of the sky splayed with stars that glinted ivory and silver. The full moon cast unearthly shadows over the hidden village and he smirked disinterestedly.

Yes, Oto was beautiful. In it's own sinfully dark way.

Konoha had always been at it's most dazzling in the sunrise. Sasuke thought that maybe it had something to do with their ever old adage of the _will of fire._ It would be fitting that they rise with the sun.

Otogakure seemed to come to life during the night, however.

At night, the city came alive with the sounds of drumming and the shouts of the people as they trained well into the evening, their jutsus lighting up the sky in a way that left the stars hazy.

Sasuke took in the sights through his sixteen year old mind and realized with passing awareness that Otogakure had been home—_but was it really?—_for the last few years. He gripped his kusanagi with his hands, idly polishing it once more.

_Home_. The word sounded foreign in his mind. Konoha had always been home and even if he left it, he was pretty sure it always would be.

Besides, with the way he woke every morning to training with Orochimaru—his days basically consisted of being blasted with jutsus sent at him one after another, forcing him to copy them with his sharingan or to be obliterated by them. And when he wasn't training he was off womanizing to pass the time—which wasn't always helpful as sex, as wonderful as it was, wasn't enough to keep life in Otogakure interesting.

At most, many of the kunoichi didn't have the fangirl mentality which is all he could say positively about them considering that none of them really matched up to him anyway.

_So no_, Sasuke thought, looking back over at the woman occupying his bed, _Otogakure is not home. Just another stop on the way._

"Come to bed, Sasuke-kun," she purred.

He smirked.

First thing tomorrow, and she would be gone like all the rest.

--

--

--

When Sasuke was younger, he'd heard sounds coming from his older brother's room. He hadn't understood the implications of the feminine sighs or the occasionally strangled moan that followed. He also didn't know how to approach his older brother on the subject of why there were always different kunoichi emerging from his quarters at odd hours in the night.

Often times, they would go in with anticipation written all over their faces despite the apathy they tried to uphold. And more than once, the next morning there would be a frightfully one-sided fight heard by him alone and whenever he found his aniki, he would be sitting on the bed, shirtless and tying his hitaiate back in place.

One time, because he was curious enough and didn't know any better, he'd hesitantly walked towards the thick shoji screens of his brother's room, worried and hoping to check on his beloved aniki in the early morning light as the rest of the clan slept on.

He had walked away quickly though upon hearing outraged shouts and the sound of glass breaking.

Later, from then on there was always a certain kunoichi on the street that would give Itachi a dirty look or the most snide comments. It had startled him at the time, because he remembered seeing her with a welcoming smile on her face towards his elder brother so Sasuke didn't understand why his brother had so carelessly disregarded her that day he eavesdropped on them.

Now, he understood.

Women were to be used, _no strings attached._

He opened his eyes to stare blankly at the ceiling, and ignored the pressure of another body snuggling closer to his side. He glanced to his left, observing the straw blonde tresses sprawled over his pillows and the peachy complexion of the latest woman whom he spent the night with. The sheets did nothing to hide her heavily gifted chest or her voluptuous hips and sensuous mouth. He saw her eyelashes flutter and felt her left leg curl over top his own. She opened her eyes, a deep teal.

He closed his deep gray eyes against her hopeful and seductive gaze.

_if you leave, i'll scream, she said, her eyes wide and veridian. i love you, so much that it hurts. _

_**What a naive fool she'd been.**_

As though realizing she was losing him, he felt her slide gradually until she sat on top of him. She rubbed herself tauntingly against his lower body, deliberately attempting to coax a response from him, but he gave no cringe or grimace, no answering passion to her lust. His hips made no move towards completion.

"One more round, what do you say Sasuke-sama?" she purred in his ear, licking her lips.

He was hard, he'd give her that. Still, he rose a stoic brow at her.

"I told you to leave."

His voice left no room for argument and he ignored the way she admired the contrast between his pale skin and her copper tones, trailing her digits along the line of his abs. He inwardly scowled at the way she ignored him, acted as though she was in a position to defy him. He should punish her.

Her breath left her in a sudden gasp as he reversed their positions, his hands kneading her ass roughly even as an impassive expression remained on his aristocratic features. He ignored the blind adoration and delight she took in tracing her eyes over his dark hair and eyes, his straight nose and high cheekbones. A hard gyration and he smirked despite himself as her eyes rolled back ecstatically. She moaned unrepentantly, just as she had the night before.

"Oh, _right_ _there,_" she hissed. "_More_."

"Hn." He gave a bland look, "Beg."

Her eyes opened incredulously. "_What_?"

"Beg." He repeated.

She narrowed her eyes defiantly, and he traced his palm over her sensitive breasts. She couldn't resist him, and he knew it. He smirked smugly at the shudder that rippled through her and held down her legs as they instinctively tried to wrap around his lean waist. He ignored her heated glower and her nails digging into his shoulders. Instead, he continued to tease her, caressing just barely with the tips of his fingers—the dip of her waist and cleavage, the rise of her hip until she was nearly insane with need. He hovered closely to her, breathing lightly over her skin but never touching, resisting the pressure she used in pulling his hair.

"Beg."

She gritted her teeth.

"Beg." His hands dipped lower and she wriggled beneath him.

He licked his lips slowly with purpose and she broke.

"...please_."_

"Louder." His fingers drew patterns on her thigh and he could see her holding back the urge to cry in frustration.

"_Please." _His hand paused and she gave a choked moan. "Please_, _please god_, please! Hurry!"_

She watched with her breath held, seeing as he thought over it and when she felt the slightest push of his hips she nearly felt relief. But as quickly as the pressure came, it went and she was left cold and naked on his bed while he nonchalantly walked away from her like nothing ever happened. She felt empty, and frustrated, with wanting him.

"Where are you going?" she sat up.

He pulled on his pants, before beginning to tie his sash and she felt herself panic before anger began to boil in her stomach.

"Sasuke-sama! You aren't just going to leave me, are you?"

He shrugged on his haori. "Yes, I am."

She gaped, and he counted the seconds till the screaming began.

_five, four, three, two..._

"_You...you bastard!_ You can't leave me, do you _know who I am?!_" she shrieked, bordering hysterical.

"No," he turned, grabbing his kusanagi. "I don't."

_Fun while it lasted though._

She seethed, and stood. She was even more insulted than before when he did not even appear affected by her bare body. She spoke in a threatening tone that he took no heed of, merely watching in amusement when her chest heaved in response to her rage. "How _dare _you_, you fucking Uchiha!"_

He approached her unapologetically, a sardonic tilt to his damn—_skilledwonderfulsoft—_lips.

"What makes you think," she remained still as he circled her with a critical eye, and pulled for control as his deep, smooth voice filled her ears, "that I would keep you for more than one night, when I could have anyone I wanted? You're attractive, but it was just sex. And the challenge is gone."

Her pride stung and she stiffened even as he continued. So that's what it was, she had just been another conquest. How stupid of her to believe she could make him bend to her will where so many others before her had failed. Everyone in Otogakure knew of Uchiha Sasuke's prowess in the bedroom, his sultry eyes despite being emotionless more than enough to reel any woman in, even the most strong-willed kunoichi. She cursed to herself, wondering when he'd wrapped her around his finger.

In the hotsprings? The market? Or when he'd licked the blood off a cut?

She felt his hot breath against her neck and the brush of his still bare chest against her back.

"You're just a _number_." He murmured before she furiously pulled her clothes together in the same hasty manner of her dignity.

Sasuke watched as she stormed away, opening the door to his quarters with a sharp flick of her wrist that sent the shoji screen sliding with a bang. He snorted at her rigid back even as it disappeared from his point of view, leaning against the door frame. He crossed his arms.

_Tch, no wonder that bastard Itachi always threw them out. Women. Such trivial things._

"Another overzealous lover, Sasuke-kun?"

"Kabuto." He acknowledged. "What do you want?"

Kabuto chuckled, pushing his glasses up in that ever annoying habit of his. He raised his hands. "Nothing, nothing." He assured. "Orochimaru-sama just wanted me to remind you that today is the celebration."

Sasuke raised a brow in inquiry. "For what?"

"Well, if you don't already know then I suppose it's a surprise."

He narrowed his eyes in annoyance before turning his back on the medic-nin and disappearing into his rooms.

He hated surprises.

--

--

--

_Unbelievable, _she thought as she stood in a treetop. Her arms were crossed comfortably over her chest as she balanced on a precarious branch.

Two years, and Oto-fucking-gakure hadn't changed. Still the same endless fields and marshes, the same clouds, the same dirt and neutral colours. Black, grey, white, beige, blue, offset by a splash of violet and the deep green of plantation. She took in a breath of the breeze that brushed her long raven hair. It still smelt of moisture, smoky in its undertones. A storm had passed by prior.

Her eyes examined the village calculatingly.

_Still the same as I left it. Shame I have to come back._

"Eager to be home?"

The female turned to her sole companion of the last two years. His gruff voice more than just familiar to her now. She caught his russet eyes and gave a neutral sigh. He followed her with ease as she leapt with a graceful push and descended to the ground without a sound. He caught up to her side in three well-placed strides and they took in the village together.

"Depends. You call this hellhole home?" the slender woman shrugged breezily, turning stormy blue eyes onto her companion.

Her male counterpart shook his head of fiery hair. "Are you always so morbid?"

"Only when I'm covered in blood." She gave a mirthless laugh at the sight of decorations.

He grimaced glancing at her navy blue cargo pants and sleeveless haori. They were faded from travel and the fishnet of her undershirt and bands around her bicep were unravelling. Her sheathed swords and silver gauntlets still gleamed in the light however, and he knew how much care she took when handling them. There were new additions to her outfit, the wide utility belt slanting from her left hip, weighed down by her kunai pouch.

"Besides, I'd have thought you'd be used to it by now. Two years is a long time with your sorry ass."

"Fine, be that way. You want to report to Otokage-sama or should I go?"

But she was already on her way, nonchalantly walking through the streets despite her appearance. Judging from the air crackling around her however, he knew she wasn't happy with whatever conclusion she'd come to. He sighed at the uncharateristically colourful streets. It would seem their kage had deemed them important enough for a celebration.

"Go home, _Tora_." The nickname still rubbed him raw even as he reminded her his name was _Taro_. "You could use the rest. You look like shit, after all."

He bristled in annoyance. "Ha ha. Fuck you."

"You're taken and five years too old!"

"And you're short on experience!"

He snorted in amusement when she merely fingered him, mindless of their fellow shinobi who paused to bow at their return or the civilians present to witness her vulgar action. They both knew that she was more than well equipped in that department. A few dishes of sake were no longer enough for them not to be concious of their actions, and no hangover was powerful enough to keep them unaware.

He was always more sore after a session with her than he'd ever been after a fight with a handful of missing-nin.

Shortly after, she walked into the familiar base of Orochimaru, where his favourite and most powerful shinobi were kept separate from his other subordinates and experiments. There was still a dais and a marble walkway surrounded by columns on either side leading to the steps of his throne. She kept her dislike in check, bowing stiffly at her leader.

"Otokage-sama."

She kept her report quick and concise, not wanting to be in the presence of her leader and his lackey. She still remembered the reasons for her eternal hatred of them.

"They've started a new border patrol, which made our mission slightly difficult, though nothing significant enough to worry about. Even three years later, they continue to recover from diminished ranks and the civilians are no longer as trusting in the shinobi populace. A lot of political battles are being fought currently, but we are the last of their worries."

"Did they know you were there?"

"Negative."

"And you're absolutely sure..."

She gritted her teeth, easily perceiving the threat that hung from his lips like soured blood.

"Any spies have been met by my blade, Otokage-sama."

Orochimaru gave grin, a gleeful look of malice blending perfectly onto his face, dismissing her glinting eyes.

"Excellent! Now, since you've returned early," he clapped his hands. "Kabuto, get our lovely girl ready for the celebrations ne?"

The woman rose from her respectful posture. "Celebrations?"

"Of course!"

"Not only should we celebrate your return but Sasuke-kun's seventeenth birthday is today," her eyes sharpened at the name, "and surely you would not deny your fellow peer a performance of your lovely talents? It's been so long since I heard you play or saw you dance."

Orochimaru gave a sickening leer at her appearance. The disgust burned its way up her throat as she struggled for composure. _How dare he._

She was not a toy, and she resented the implications of his voice. She glowered silently at the ground as she felt Kabuto's taller frame come to her side and his fingers whisper over her gauntlets before tugging her own. There was a shine in his eyes and she bit her tongue at being directed under such shamelessly lustful gazes.

Kabuto led her through the maze of Orochimaru's residence, a possessive grip on her right hand and Kagome felt bile rise in her throat. She had never gotten along with the medic-nin and to have him handling her as though she belonged to him—_she was not an object._

If Kabuto noticed her hostility, he made no mention of showing it. Instead he stopped before a pair of shoji screens where there were intricate murals painted into the paper doors of cranes and rice fields, sakura petals in waving patterns reminscent of moving wind.

The kunoichi tugged her hand away warily, glancing into the dark eyes of Kabuto. "What is the meaning of this?"

She remembered these doors, they led to a private onsen reserved for whoever was Orochimaru's current favourite. And as much as she knew the snake valued her abilities, he had never favoured her in such a way, and the one time he had, she wordlessly rejected his offer, choosing to never enter the onsens he had ordered to be carved specifically for her. They had gone unused for the duration of her residence in Oto, and now she wondered at the engraved Uchiwa fan carved into its panels.

Apparently someone had replaced her. She pursed her lips. Half of her was relieved to have Orochimaru's attention elsewhere, but staring at the emblem and at Kabuto's sly smirk, Kagome was overcome with a sense of foreboding.

"Now, now." Kabuto chuckled to himself, "I'd forgotten how paranoid and absurdly stoic you are."

"Kabuto." She intoned lowly. She was not in the mood for games.

"There is no ulterior motive, honest."

_Liar._

He sighed. "Come on, hime-chan," she scowled at the use of the endearment. "Cooperate, Orochimaru-sama only wants you to get ready for the celebration, then you can do whatever you want."

For a minute, the young woman could almost remember the old Kabuto. Before Otogakure, before Orochimaru. But then she turned and slid the shoji screen closed behind her, shrugging off the dusty folds of the past and the ashen memories that went with it. The thud of the door closing gave off a note of finality, and strangely enough, she was pleased with it.

--

--

--

_hate me. live to kill me. avenge them. avenge them. avenge them._

Sasuke scowled to himself, the echoes of his brother's voice in his ear. The memories of his purpose were hitting him stronger now more than ever and it angered him. He'd been in Otogakure for more than three years now, and he had gotten nowhere near to getting rid of his bastard brother for good. His seventeenth birthday was today and the thought of it brought more irritation welling up within him.

Every year, Orochimaru insisted they celebrate his birthday despite his hatred of parties. He claimed it was a way to show his appreciation for Sasuke's leading a good example to Oto-nin and for continuous good missions records.

_The snake was just full of shit. _Orochimaru was merely attempting to butter him up.

He crossed his arms.

One of these days, he was going to kill the Sannin. It wasn't like his ulterior motive wasn't clear to Sasuke.

He saw it plain as day, but he needed more time. He had learned all he could from the Snake Sannin already, but it would take a while before he could find a suitable opening.

He suppressed the urge to unsheathe his kusanagi as Karin sent a sultry look his way. Instead, his fists clenched within the confines of the billowing sleeves of his white haori.

The festivities were going strong, music filling the air worthy of the village name. Sasuke was hard pressed not to smirk as he caught sight of Tayuya leading the orchestra, hostility in her eyes despite the deft movements of her fingers, a lilting tune from her flute. He had always hated Tayuya.

_a flash of green, red, a hollow white circle _

He only hated her a little less than Karin.

_karin with wine red hair, juugo with hair more strawberry than golden, fucking imposters—_

He viciously cut his thoughts short. He refused to think about _them, _they who didn't belong in the dark shadows that was Orochimaru's village.

"Come, Sasuke. Are you not enjoying the festivities?" Orochimaru spoke in velvet tones, his amusement apparent in his murky amber eyes.

"Hn."

Orochimaru pouted mockingly at his dismissal before a perverse smile caught on his thin lips, beckoning with tapered fingers for Kabuto.

"Yes, Orochimaru-sama?" Kabuto asked immediately.

_The ever willing bitch, _Sasuke thought to himself contemptuously.

"Where is hime-chan? I thought I made it clear that she was to perform for Sasuke-kun."

Orochimaru hid a smirk behind a hand when he noticed the curious gleam in Sasuke's eyes.

"I believe she is making her debut as we speak, Orochimaru-sama."

"Good, good. Have the musicians play louder, yes?"

"Of course."

--

--

--

He remembered when he first met her. How he had gazed so attentively at her lone figure in the room. The way the music had bid his blood to run and how her movements had stolen his breath.

She had been an attractive silhouette, poised strategically behind the shoji screen leading to the main floor as a makeshift stage. A baseline had been picking up, and there was the thrumming of drums that announced the presence of a main event, and the sounds of three shamisens had played a haunting melody of enchantment, as the lights dimmed.

Her figure had stepped from behind the shoji screens, her face hidden by two decorative fans that gleamed of gold fire, held by long and femine, tapered fingers of pale skin. The dim lights had played delicious shadows across her exposed collar bone, and turned the white silk of her flowing kimono a tainted grey.

Slowly, almost as though she had been walking through water, the skirt of her long clothing pooled behind her, fluttering like waves and then her wrists gave a sharp flick of its twin fans and throughout the room, a draft of wind was felt and her chakra had blazed an ethereal ivory in the night.

Sparks of lightning had crackled at her command, white blazes of fire lurching in reach of her figure as she spun, a blur of obsidian hair and graceful limbs, her feet making no sound as her breath had come out in dainty sighs, like whispers of wind through solitary trees.

The strings of the shamisen had played a lilting tune in harmony until the drums slowed to a low heartbeat. Her hair became undone, slowly but surely through her dance until it had flown with her movements, her wide sleeves billowing and sliding to reveal her slender forearms. She had cast spells with her swaying motions, light playing across her features, wind rustling her clothes with the spinning of her fingers.

Her eyes had been closed through the dance, in tribute perhaps, to her long lashes but then she had looked at him with eyes of glittering blue, a ring of penetrating jade and silver around the iris and arched against the porcelaine of her pronounced cheekbones. The ornaments in her hair remained askew but the small bells at their ends tinkled gently above her brow.

Then, abruptly, the music had stopped and her fans snapped closed.

--

--

--

Sasuke stared unseeingly at the murky floors and he wondered why he was even telling him this.

_--_

_--_

_--_

"Happy birthday," she said. Her voice was low, womanly in it's tenor vibrations. She folded her kimono underneath her with delicate expertise and gave him a traditional bow of her head in respect.

She was good-looking. Ridiculously so. Sasuke let his eyes rove over her figure.

Her hair, he was sure, felt even silkier than it looked and under the light it remained a pitch black, but shone with a certain kind of wealth. Two stray onyx locks framed the sides of her face with her bangs parted where her Oto-hitaiate would be seen clearly if she was wearing it, but Sasuke doubted she would wear it out of pride rather than necessity.

She wore what he was sure was an expensive kimono, and up close he could see it was lined with indigo on the edges of billowing sleeves and her left shoulder, silver thread used to depict a delicate fluttering of stars. To emphasize her slender body and curves, a wide obi of pure white was intricately tied around a portion of her torso, dragged down by unnoticeable cords just as white, braided through the material and a vibrant cord, braided of red thread around a lock of hair.

Attached to it, an opaque bead of onyx.

Up close and personal, she knelt before him and served him tea, and her features seemed magnified in a way that was attractive. Dark, lustrous hair. Smooth, untainted alabaster skin. High cheekbones, straight nose, full lips. Curves in all the right places, toned and slender underneath all the silk, he was sure.

And her eyes. Deep, dark. Fathomless. They were nearly feline in appearance, the way they arched perfectly. But the way she held his eyes, her subdued mannerisms...there was a willfulness to her, something that made her real. It was something he'd never seen in a woman his age before.

He looked away, and drank from the tea she poured him.

She didn't look like she wanted to be there, sitting at the table on the dais with the three most influential figures within the authority ranks of the village.

"Sasuke-kun, I would like to introduce you to Hime-chan."

_He remembered snorting at such presumptiousness, to name oneself a princess_.

"Hime-chan, that was a very wonderful dance you did," Orochimaru sipped on some sake. "Don't you agree, Sasuke-kun?"

_Well fuck, _Sasuke thought because she had been sizing him up and he could tell that she wasn't impressed. With that stoic look on her face and somewhat condescending gaze on him, she seemed different.

Almost..._noble._

"Where did you learn to dance like that?"

Her eyes never left his.

_So defiant._

A questionable shiver went down Sasuke's spine.

--

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**AN: **Sorry for any errors guys, but I'll edit soon. Anyways, hope you enjoyed it! And again, hope the scene shifts aren't too confusing—I'm still trying to find a way to fix that, but from now on most of the story will be centered around Sasuke's experiences in Otogakure with brief interludes in present Konoha. But yeah! Thanks for reading.


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